Life with autism: The struggle to get a job

A Lee County group is trying to address a common yet overlooked struggle in the autism community: People with autism are having a hard time getting hired for jobs.

Just 58 percent of young adults with autism work for pay outside the home between high school and their early 20s, according to the National Autism Indicators Report.

That rate is far lower than young adults with other disabilities. Those that work tend to work part-time or low-wage jobs.

"They desperately want to be employed," said Sandra Worth, founder of My Autism Connection in Fort Myers. "They just want to be given a chance and they feel like they're not."

Worth, whose son has autism, founded My Autism Connection with her son's friend, Brad Karpel, who also has autism. Autism is a spectrum disorder that is characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors and communication.

The group, made up of people with autism, meets frequently in Lee County to talk about issues the autism community encounters: Communication issues, living independently, and securing employment.

"We want them to have a future independently. We talk about that. We talk about what it looks like to be independent," Worth said.

Karpel, who works full-time as a health information management technician in Southwest Florida, believes people with autism can be successful employees.

"Once I have a rhythm down, I'm the best employee that can be there," Karpel said.

But he believes the job interview is where people with autism struggle, and companies give up on potential employees.

"They'll just take one look at you and say, 'He's a little strange or out there. I don't necessarily want that on my work force,'" Karpel said.

My Autism Connection works to help people with autism learn techniques for the job interview. Worth would also like companies to work on trying to hire more people with autism.

Some have already tried. Microsoft launched a pilot program in 2015, hoping to diversify its work force and employ more people with autism. Best Buy and Ford also created programs to do this. But Worth believes companies have not done nearly enough to address this issue.

Justin Padilla, a college student with autism working part-time with the Lee County Library System, hopes potential employers can get past the first impression and trust that people like him would be excellent employees.

"I'm not being rude. This is how I am, you got to understand that," said Padilla, who hopes to one day educate other people with autism.

"I don't think that should be a barrier to employment or success," Worth said. "If he's qualified, he's qualified. End of story. He can be shown what's appropriate. He can be taught how to interact and engage."

ABC will premiere a new series on Monday, Sept. 25, about a surgeon with autism. It's called "The Good Doctor" and airs Monday night at 10 p.m.